--------------Chapter 11: The Escape--------------
Shinichi laughed, "Yeah yeah, whatever you say." He looked into her eyes with a smile, walking out of the rink and towards the house. "Hey Ran... Do we always have to-?... Ah, nevermind," he looked down, blushing.
Poking his nose, Ran leaned forward onto her tippy toes and looked into his eyes, "Aw, come on."
"Well..." continued Shinichi, to her usherance, as they stepped in front of the door and stopped. "Whenever people ask, do we always have to say that..." He picked up his head and looked to her with a slightly-worried expression, "we're.. NOT... boyfriend and girlfriend?..." He felt the heat emanate from his face, as well as the sweat in his palm holding Ran's hand.
Back by the house, Heiji was walking up the steps. "So will you be the chef tonight?" he asking, turning to Kazuha.
Kazuha came infront of Heiji, "Really!?" She opened the door and ran into the kitchen. "Hm, let's see, miso?" she scratched the side of her head.
Heiji came in and sat down on the couch. "Haha yeah, that sounds all right. Huh?" He looked out the window, seeing the outline of Ran and Shinichi approaching. "Hmm. Looks like somebody else is almost home..."
Kazuha began to throw out pans and pots onto the stove. She put on the same apron Ran was wearing earlier today and clapped her hands together. "Vegetables," she stated, going into the fridge.
Ran and Shinichi walked up the steps. Ran looked away from him, "Well, uh-" She suddenly heard the door open up from behind her.
Kazuha jumped onto her, "Ran! You're home! Thank goodness, I'm cooking right now!" She pulled Ran away from Shinichi and shoved her into the kitchen.
Shinichi stood there with his empty hand hanging down and his mouth open, as if he was going to say something. His face like a tomato, he stepped into the house and closed the door. He went to hang his coat back up, then remembered about the gloves. He looked over to the kitchen, but Ran was long gone. So he took it off and shoved it into the coat pocket.
Heiji looked up at him from the couch. "What's wrong, Kudou?" he asked. Shinichi merely glanced at him, expressionless. He felt drained, as he walked down the hall and into Conan's room.
After cooking dinner for a while, Kazuha walked out and put it on the table. She wiped the side of her face with the back of her wrist. "Finally." She looked over at Ran, who was walking down the hallway, "Ah, thanks for your help, Ran."
Ran smiled, "It's fine." She knocked on Conan's door, "Uh, Shinichi? Are you okay?" She realized after a hour or two of cooking in the kitchen, she didn't see him come out of the room at all.
Heiji walked into the kitchen and sat down, after having relaxed on the couch for a few hours, He nearly dozed off a few times, but was reawakened whenever he had something to contribute to the girls' conversation.
Shinichi turned over in the bed, hearing a voice. Groggily, he sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Huh? Uh, oh yeah, I'm just tired." He then realized that it was Ran's voice, and his face burned up again. "Great. How can I face her now?" He pushed the blanket aside and opened the door.
Kazuha took a bite of the meal she had prepared. She smiled happily, "It turned out great! The curry, I mean." She continued eating her share.
Ran took a step back, waving her hands back and forth, "Did I wake you? I didn't mean to, you can go back to sleep if you'd like." She turned back to the direction she came from. "I was just checking on you," she said, laughing embarrassingly.
"No! It's okay!" called Shinichi, hasting his way toward the kitchen. He sat down in the seat across from Heiji, who raised an eyebrow at him, a couple of noodles hanging from his mouth.
"And just where have YOU been?" he asked, after swallowing them.
"Heh, I just took a nap. That's all. Ohh, is this curry?" Shinichi asked, looking at the bowl.
Kazuha nodded. "I cooked it! Yes, yes I did," she said, putting a hand to her chest and smiling.
Ran was taking her pony tail out, "You did a good job, Kazuha."
Kazuha looked at Ran amazed, as if Ran was the one who was the famous head chef in the household. "So I've taken your place as head chef?"
Ran smiled, confused, "What?"
Shinichi looked up to Kazuha, "Yeah, what do you mean by that, Kazuha?..." Heiji glanced over at her too.
"I could be the second chef!" she said, jumping up.
Ran put up her pointer finger up questiongly, "Wait Kazuha, what do you mea-"
Kazuha pulled Ran's cheeks. "Me-second-head-chef," Kazuha said, playfully.
Ran rolled her eyes, with a sweat drop on the side of her face. "I still dun know whad you mean," she said, still with her mouth spread out.
Heiji looked at her worried. "You don't mean that... you'll be staying here for good... do you?"
Shinichi almost choked on the juice he was drinking.
Kazuha shrugged, "Maybe I should." She looked at Ran, who was rubbing her red cheeks. Kazuha wrapped her arms around Ran's waist. "Huh Ran?"
Ran looked down at Kazuha, "Eh?"
Kazuha put a finger to Ran's mouth, "No need to say anything else. I understand, I'll take care of you, like worrying about your schooling, friends who are being mean, and your first kiss-" she stopped, looking at Ran, "You never had your first kiss, have you?"
Ran took a step back, "Kazuha, what are you thinking..."
Kazuha smiled, then puckered her lips and came closer. "Uwah!" Ran fell to the ground. Kazuha fell down on top of her, hovering over her. "Mwah mwah mwah.." hummed Kazuha, as the side of her face was being pushed by Ran's hand.
Ran quickly slid away and into the kitchen. She looked down at the clear glass bottle Kazuha had used in the meal. "Vodka?!" she looked at Kazuha as she jumped onto her, puckering her lips.
"AHHHH!!!!!" A simultaneous scream by both Heiji and Shinichi, as they jumped out of their chairs and went to pull Kazuha off of Ran. Shinichi took Kazuha by the arms and commenced pulling her up, while Heiji tried to back Ran off and form a barrier between the two.
"What the hell is wrong with you, Kazuha?!" shouted Heiji, looking into her drunken face.
She felt someone hold her back, "Mm?" She turned around, squinting her eyes, "Ah, Kudou saving your girlfriend from me.." She was slurring her words with a smile on her face. She looked over at Ran, who had an expression that was blank. "Geh," Kazuha said.
Ran poked her nose, "You're drunk."
Kazuha freed herself out of Shinichi's grasp. "I am SOOOOO not," Kazuha said, putting an arm around Ran. "Me You need to talk," she said, giggling. Ran looked at Kazuha, then at the boys.
"I'm going to take her to bed," she said, with a fake laugh.
The boys blinked and simultaneously they shouted again, "I hope you mean, to sleep!" They looked at each other, then back at the girls.
Ran shot a look at them. "Of course I mean sleep!" she whispered loudly.
Kazuha poked Ran's cheek. "I'm not, NOT, not drunk." Ran laughed as she opened the door. Kazuha smiled, "Ah, bed." she walked over to the bed, almost looking like she was a ballerina.
Ran rose a brow, "Uh, Kazuha?" Kazuha's face was already buried in the pillow, sound asleep. Ran sighed, "Nevermind." She closed the door and walked back into the livingroom, the lights went out. Standing in the dark hallway she looked around for a switch, or at least, something that could show her where she was going. As she was walking, she tripped and landed on her knees, "OwWw.." She looked around, moving her hands against the ground, then sliding them up against the wall next to her, leading her to the living room.
Suddenly, Shinichi felt a hand on his face. "Hey, what the-?" The lights suddenly flicked on for a moment. Shinichi had been feeling the wall for guidance too. "Ran?!"
Heiji was in the living room already, with the lighter and candles in hand, lighting them just as he did earlier.
Ran took her hand back, "Sorry!" She looked around, "A black out, again?" She sighed deeply, rubbing her head. She gave up, then just sat down.
Kazuha, in the next room, was actually awake. She had opened the window quietly, "This is perfect! I wouldn't expect a black out! Now I can really go to the Professor's house for sure! " She had jumped outside of the window and ran quietly to Agasa's house.
Shinichi heard Ran slide down the wall and to the floor. He still couldn't see, as the light from the candles Heiji was lighting didn't quite reach the hallway. He held his hand out to see if he could feel where she was again and make sure she didn't fall. He slowly knelt down, until he felt a lock of soft hair under his hand. "Ran, are you okay?" He knelt completely, keeping his hand on the side of her face.
Ran blushed, "Yeah, I'm fine." She turned, hearing Heiji from behind her, "Heiji, you should check on Kazuha."
Over at Agasa's, Kazuha rang the doorbell, before someone had opened the door she had thought to herself. "I'm going to find Kogoro... With that Botan guy, tonight." Opening the door, the young man had looked down at Kazuha, "You!" She pulled him outside by the shirt and quietly closed the front door behind him, "You're going to tell me where Kogoro is, all right Mr. Botan? Tonight."
He quickly nodded, " I, uh, the last place was..."
Heiji finished lighting the last candle, then raised an eyebrow at her, muttering, "What am I, your servant?" as he walked down the hallway.
Shinichi watched as the image of Heiji disappeared as it came closer, then listened to the steps of his shoes as he continued behind him. He closed his eyes, "That's good to know, Ran." He didn't even notice himself slowly leaning closer to her.
Ran, was still looking down the hallway, not noticing that Shinichi was leaning closer. She had watched Heiji walk into the room. She looked back at Shinichi.
Meanwhile, Kazuha was sitting at a nearby park bench next to Nagi Botan. "He is alive?" she nearly almost choked him for lying to Ran, she simply just pinched herself in the hand.
Nagi got up, "I'll show you where Mr. Mouri is being held at." He looked down at Kazuha, "Only if I get to see Ms. Mouri later." He grinned.
Kazuha rose a brow. "You really like Ms. Mouri, don't you?" she said, getting up. He nodded frantically. She sighed, taking a couple of steps, she looked forward. "Show me where he is, then she'll decide that." Nagi nodded as he caught a taxi with Kazuha.
The candles were getting brighter, and now Shinichi could see the outline of Ran's hair. He moved even closer.
"Ummm, Ran?" interrupted Heiji, simply opening the door to the room, "Do you normally leave your window wide open in the middle of winter?" He blinked.
Ran, suddenly paid attention to Heiji. "No, no I don't." She gave fake smile, "Why would I?" She tilted her head, then took a glance at Shinichi and poked his nose. "Listen, if you're that scared then you can just ask to move closer to me," she said, giggling softly.
Shinichi blushed, "I'm not scared! I just..."
"Oi! Kazuha's not here!" Heiji shouted from the bedroom. Shinichi turned around in the darkness in the direction of the yell.
Quickly getting up, Ran ran to the room. Looking inside, "empty."
"We need to find her!" She quickly got on her coat and ran outside, leaving the boys in the office.
--------------End Chapter 11--------------